


The Worst/Best Christmas Ever

by captainhookcaptainfreedom



Series: CS AU Week 2K17 [1]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Neighbors, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Brothers, CS AU week 2k17, Captain Swan - Freeform, Child, Christmas, Christmas AU, Christmas Eve, Christmas Fluff, Day 1, Emma doesn't give Henry up, F/M, Family, Fluff, Henry Swan - Freeform, Holiday, Love, Neighbors, Romance, holiday au, minor m/m relationship, single parent, young henry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-05
Updated: 2017-09-05
Packaged: 2018-12-24 02:53:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,267
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12003474
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/captainhookcaptainfreedom/pseuds/captainhookcaptainfreedom
Summary: When their flight home is cancelled, Emma is convinced that she and Henry are going to have the worst Christmas ever.  However, their next door neighbor, Killian Jones, has different ideas.Written for Day 1 (Holiday AU) of CS AU Week 2k17.Originally posted on tumblr.





	The Worst/Best Christmas Ever

**Author's Note:**

> Merry Christmas in September!! (or whenever you are reading this!)  
> This was supposed to be less than 1k words but oh well! My muse does what it wants.
> 
> FYI: In this fic, Emma has kept Henry. Henry is very young. David is Emma's biological brother (I don't really go in to detail about this, but it's implied that they didn't always know each other). August is also Emma's brother, but not by blood.  
> Killian and Emma are neighbors and they live in Boston. Let's just assume Killian has two hands because I never address that. Killian gets along with both of his brothers. Killian is Irish.
> 
> Also, here is a rough estimate of ages:  
> Emma - 24. Killian - 28. Liam - 35. Elsa - 26. Liam II - 25. Nemo - 44.

This had to be the worst day of Emma’s life. Well, maybe not the  _ worst _ day (she’d had a lot of bad days after all) but this was definitely one of the worst.    
_ Pull yourself together, Emma _ she thought to herself.  _ It’s not like you haven’t spent Christmas alone before. _

Even knowing that this wouldn’t be any different from just 4 years before, Emma couldn’t help but feel disappointed. She’d been looking forward to Christmas for ages. It was the first time in months that she’d get to see them in person. See her family. She’d been busy with work and getting her degree and of course Henry was always a handful just like any six year old. 

_ Oh yes. She wasn’t spending Christmas completely alone.  _ How was she supposed to tell Henry that he wouldn’t be seeing his Aunt and Uncles this Christmas? He’d been just as excited as Emma. He’d been even more excited. 

Emma had always tried to make Christmas a happy time for Henry even when they didn’t have much. He was too young to remember those years though. He only remembered driving to Storybrooke, Maine each December to spend Christmas at his Uncle David and Aunt Mary Margaret’s house. It was always special. It was magical. Emma even thought so. 

_ What was she going to tell him? _

“You alright, lass?” A concerned voice interrupted her panicked thoughts.

She had been standing outside her apartment door when she’d received the notification of the flight cancellation. She’d then done a quick and desperate search of road conditions and knew that it would be near impossible for them to get from Boston to Storybrooke safely. 

So, it did make sense that it was their neighbor, one Killian Jones, who would stumble upon Emma. 

Emma pushed herself away from the wall and glanced over at Killian. “I’m fine,” she quickly and automatically responded. She watched as his brow furrowed as he watched her.

“You are most definitely not fine, love.” he responded, easily spotting her lie. He took a step closer to his apartment door and gestured with his head for her to come along inside with him. “Come on to my flat and tell me your troubles over a cuppa. It won’t be the first time. You know I won’t judge.”

Emma rolled her eyes at him but followed, silently grateful. “It’s an  _ apartment _ and I will not be have a “cuppa” unless it’s hot cocoa.”

* * *

 

Emma found herself curled up on the familiar black leather sofa (which was covered in the slightly less masculine, but just as familiar blue knitted afghan) of her neighbor, Killian Jones. 

“Here you are, love. Hot cocoa as requested,” he handed the steaming mug to her carefully. “With cinnamon of course.” He smiled and Emma nodded her head gratefully at him. 

She hummed as she felt the warmth of the cocoa seep into her hands and smelt the delicious combination of chocolate and cinnamon.

He sat down beside her on the sofa, tilting his body so he faced her. He let her just sit for a moment as he sipped his tea and she sipped her cocoa. He’d learned that the warm drink did wonders to help Emma calm down whenever she was worried. The warmth was likely what did it. A warm cup of tea had always had the same effect on himself and his brothers. 

“So, do you want to tell me your troubles?”

Emma sighed. “I shouldn’t be bothering you with this. It’s nothing really.”

Killian shook his head. “You’re not getting out of it that easy. You know it’s no bother to me if you want to share whatever’s on your mind. And obviously it is  _ something _ . It’s been months since I’ve seen you this upset. I’m here and I’m listening, Emma.”

“It’s silly.”

Killian rolled his eyes and gave her a pointed look.

“Our flight, Henry’s and mine, back home got cancelled. With the weather conditions the way they are, there’s no way we’ll be able to go home for Christmas.”

Killian looked at her, a confused expression crossing his face. “I thought - Isn’t  _ this _ home? Boston?”

Emma offered a small smile. “Maine is. A tiny little town on the coast of Maine is home. My brother lives there with his wife. Henry and I spend every Christmas there with them. It’s something incredibly special.”

“Family is what makes it home, isn’t that right?” Killian offered her a sad smile.

“I shouldn’t be complaining about this to you. You’re so far from your family. It’s hardly fair of me to be upset over not seeing them this one day when it’s a reasonably short drive whenever we want.”

“Love, I’m exactly the one you should be complaining to. I get it. Being away from family, especially around the holidays, is hard. And, for the record, my family isn’t nearly as far away as you think they are love. Yes, many of my relatives live in Ireland still, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have family here in the states.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be.”

Emma leaned back into the sofa with a frustrated sigh. “I just don’t know what to tell Henry. I mean, of course I’m upset myself, but he’s the one I’m worried about. He hasn’t stopped talking about Christmas for weeks. The Christmas he knows is all about going and seeing family in a snow covered town and waking up to the smell of cinnamon pancakes and seeing glittering lights on a giant  _ natural _ tree. David and Mary Margaret go all out. I’ve barely done anything.” Emma groaned. “I’m such a failure as a mother. I should have the apartment all decorated and I should’ve bought him more gifts. I’m just used to relying on them to figure out the Christmas magic. I’m the one who should have been doing it, but I didn’t and now it’s too late.”

Killian shook his head. He places his mug down on the coffee table then reached over, took Emma’s mug from her hands, and did the same with her mug. Then, he hugged her. Eventually she gave in and hugged back. 

“You are  _ not _ a bad mum. You are wonderful with Henry. None of this is your fault. Most days, you’re barely scraping by. I know you don’t like to admit it, but I’ve witnessed it, alright? You somehow still manage to always have a smile on your face for your lad. You always have time no matter how tired you are, no matter how much work you have left to do. So maybe this Christmas isn’t going to be like Henry’s previous experiences. That doesn’t mean it’s going to be bad.”

“I just don’t even know where to start.”

Killian smiled at her and stood up. “Start by telling Henry that your plans have changed. Explain to him why.” He paused. “Have you called your family yet? Let them know that you can’t make it?”

Emma shook her head, guilt written on her face. 

“Well, maybe start by calling them and then tell Henry. Then, I’ll swing by your place and let the young lad know that he and his mother are both invited to spend Christmas eve and day at the Jones residence next store.” Emma’s mouth opened and she looked ready to fight him on that but Killian just charged right through the rest of his instructions. “Also, as long as this works for your relatives of course, let him know that you’ll be calling or video-chatting with his Aunt and Uncle sometime over Christmas. It’s not the same, but it is nice to be able to see them, I can speak from experience.”

“Wait, wait, wait.” Emma finally spoke up as Killian paused. “We’re not spending Christmas with you.”

Killian looked at her with a smug smirk on his face but he played innocent. “Why not? Henry knows me. I’d maybe even venture to say that he likes me. And I will have you know that Christmases in the Jones households are always wonderful. No matter what. You would be more than welcome to join.”

“Killian, no. We’re not going to intrude.”

Killian let out a frustrated grunt. “Swan, you are not intruding. I’m inviting you. My brothers are coming with their respective significant others and we’re somehow all going to fit in this small flat. That’s one that hasn’t been figured out yet, but I assure you that no one is going to mind it if there’s more people. The more the merrier and all that. Plus, I guarantee you that my sister-in-law will be incredibly grateful to have another woman around. She loves us all dearly, but I’m sure she’d love you even more. Before you even say anything, no one would mind Henry. They’re all fond of children. There’s nothing wrong with you spending your Christmas with my family and with me.” He looked at her a moment but then looked down shyly, his hand coming up to his ear. “I’d be quite happy if you did.” His roguish smile returned as he looked back up at her. “Plus, I already bought you and the lad gifts anyway. It’s almost serendipitous that you’ll now be here to receive them.”

“Killian! You shouldn’t be getting us-”

“Oh Swan, really? If I have the extra money and want to buy my favorite little man and his mother Christmas gifts, I am allowed to.”

“We shouldn’t spend christmas with you.” Emma refused again but it was obvious she was starting to come around.

“Says who?” He said wearily. “C’mon. For once in your life Swan,” Killian reached forward and grabbed her hands, pulling her up from the sofa to stand in front of him, “take a chance and have some fun. You deserve it.”

* * *

 

“Henry, Henry sweetheart. It’s okay. It’ll be okay.”

The waterworks had started almost as soon as Emma had broken the news that they wouldn’t be headed to Storybrooke. Henry’s little face had screwed up,his eyes squeezed shut, and then he’d let out a heartbreaking wail. 

“Oh,come on, Henry,” Emma wrapped her arms around Henry and brought him close to her. She ran her hand up and down his back. “It’s okay. Everything is going to be fine. I know this isn’t what we planned. I know you’re upset, but it’s still Christmas. We can still have a wonderful Christmas here in Boston.”

Henry continued to cry.

* * *

 

It was two hours later when Emma had finally coaxed Henry to dry his eyes. He now sat on the plush love seat, his small body swaddled in three blankets. Emma had slipped a warm mug of cocoa into his hands with firm instructions for him to drink carefully and slowly. 

There was a soft knock at the apartment door before it swung open and Killian stepped in. He followed the sound of little sniffles coming from the living room. He rapped his knuckles on the doorway, capturing the little boy’s attention. Henry looked up with a pout.

“What has you so upset, lad?” Killian walked over and crouched down in front of Henry. 

Henry’s frown deepened. “I - I don't -” he stumbled over the words as tears threatened to begin flowing again, “I don’t get to have Christmas.”

Killian looked at the boy with kind eyes. “Hush now,” he gently wiped the stray tears from Henry’s cheeks. “You’ll get to have Christmas. We all get to have Christmas.”

“But we can’t get there,” he protested.

Killian laughed kind heartedly. “Christmas isn’t a place. Christmas is everywhere. Christmas will happen right here in this building. It’ll be in this very flat. Mine too.” He smiled at the boy. “And that’s exactly where you’ll have Christmas. That is if you want to.” 

Henry looked at Killian and then up at Emma who was standing by the doorway. His round eyes returned back to the man in front of him. “Christmas at your house? Can Mommy come too?”

“Of course your mum can come!” He replied with a laugh and a smile. 

“But-But there’s no snow here. How can it be Christmas with no snow?”

“Well,” Killian started, “lucky for you, I have a friend coming for Christmas who is quite the expert when it comes to snow.”

“Really? A snow expert?”

“Really, truly.”

Henry thought for a moment and then looked over at his mother nervously. “Can we?”

Kilian looked over at her too, his eyes wide and innocent. “Yes, can we?”

Emma fought back a smile. “Yes, we can.” The edges of her lips pulled up just a little. 

Henry turned back to Killian, a happy look on his face. “We can have Christmas with you!” he squealed excitedly. He then reached out to wrap his arms around Killian’s neck in a hug. “Thank you Killy,” the little boy said.

Killian smiled into the boy’s soft hair. “You’re very welcome lad.”

* * *

 

The next day, Christmas Eve, Emma and Henry could be found in the apartment of Killian Jones at an hour far too early for Emma’s tastes. 

“There aren’t any decorations,” Henry said. He sent a confused and accusatory look towards Killian.

“Not  _ yet _ ,” Killian said. “It’s tradition in my family to do all the decorating the day before. Now, my brother and his wife are bringing the tree so we won’t be able to start on that until they get here. We can, however, turn on some Christmas carols, drink some eggnog, and start the rest of the decorating. How does that sound, lad?”

Henry enthusiastically nodded his head. “Yes, please.”

The happy trio almost didn’t hear the doorbell when it rang at noon. They were having too much fun. Emma had been surprised by Killian’s taste in music. She wasn’t sure what she had expected, but it wasn’t his chosen playlist of holiday tunes that varied between classic Bing Crosby and classic rock. Laughter surely did fill the air. Killian’s flat looked a great deal more festive since their arrival there that morning. Currently, the three of them were in Killian’s small kitchen decorating Christmas cookies. 

The bell rang again and Killian hurriedly licked the icing from his wrist and headed towards the door, calling out to whomever was on the other side, “Coming! Coming!”

He opened the door and a giant smile spread across his face. “Liam!” he shouted. “Elsa!” 

The pair on the other side of the door smiled at him. “Brother!” Liam called back, clapping a hand on Killian’s shoulder. 

Elsa smiled and tried to contain a laugh. “Um, Killian?” She tapped her nose. 

He looked at her confused for a moment but then wiped his finger against his own nose. It came back with a smear of blue icing. He laughed. “Huh. I’m sure this could be blamed on a certain little elf in the kitchen.”

Elsa laughed again. “So, do we get to be introduced?”

“Of course, of course, sorry. Come on in.” Killian opened the door wider and let his older brother and sister-in-law inside. They shed their coats and handed them over to Killian followed by hugs all around. Killian guided them towards the kitchen. “Emma. Henry.” 

Emma had managed to wrangle Henry away from the sweet treats and forced him to turn towards the new arrivals even as he attempted to hide behind his mother. “Hi,” Emma said, nervousness clear in her voice.

“You must be Miss Swan,” the curly haired man said to her with a bright smile. “My little brother’s mentioned you more than once. It is an absolute pleasure to finally meet you.” He walked towards her and grasped both of her hands.

“Oh,” Emma said surprised. _Killian had mentioned her?_ _What had he said?_ “I - It’s very nice to meet you too!” She stumbled over her words in surprise. 

“Killian laughed from behind his brother. He reached a hand onto the older man’s shoulder and pulled him away from Emma a few steps. “Emma, this is my older brother, Liam.” He motioned to the elegant blond woman behind them. She stepped up closer and placed a hand on her husband’s arm. “This is his wife, Elsa.”

“It’s lovely to meet you, Emma.”

“You too.” Emma said, relaxing a bit in response to Elsa’s kind and casual smile. 

“And who is that charming young man with you?” Elsa asked playfully, pointing towards the shy Henry. 

“That,” Killian began with a smile, “would be young Henry.” He leaned down towards the boy and nudged him forward. “You remember me telling you about my friend the snow expert, don’t you Henry?”

He nodded his head.

“Well, Elsa is that snow expert. I am sure she would love to help you make some snow to celebrate with.” 

“I would love to.” She smiled at the little boy. “Snow is one of my favorite parts of Christmas.”

“Me too.”

Elsa took Henry’s small hand and moved him out towards the living room after getting a nod of permission from Emma.

“So,” Killian turned to his brother. “Do you need some help bringing up your bags?”

Liam nodded. “That would be fine. We also have something a bit bigger that you’ll need to help me bring up.” Liam smiled brightly at them both, mischief in his eyes.

* * *

 

Henry sat in front of the big tree, his eyes wide and his mouth dropping open just slightly. 

“It’s a beautiful tree, Liam, really. Thank you.” Killian told his brother. 

“Well, we couldn’t show up empty handed,” Elsa said. She sat next to Henry and was still busy cutting out paper snowflakes. Henry had momentarily forgotten about the promise of snow while he was still enamored by the giant pine tree. 

The sound of the doorbell rang out again throughout the apartment. 

“Ah, that must be our brother. Late as always,” Liam joked. 

Killian laughed and moved to open the door. “You’re finally here,” he laughed as he motioned for the men outside to come in. 

“Come on, Florida is a bit far from Boston, okay? And god, did we have delays or what trying to get here?” the younger man said, turning to his companion. “And bloody hell is it cold up here.”

Elsa rolled her eyes and shouted to the youngest of the brothers from where she sat in the living room, not even turning around to look at him, “Maybe if you wore something warmer than a t-shirt you wouldn’t have that problem.” 

“How does she-?” he started, but shook his head, deciding to drop it. After all, this did happen every year.    
A rumbling laugh responded. “I try to tell him, Elsa. Every year.” the other new arrival finally spoke up. 

Killian joined in the laughter at his brother’s expense. “He just can’t learn.” He leaned over and ruffled his brother’s hair.

“Oh, Killian, really?” 

He laughed. “Your hair’s longer.”

“Is it?!” came a surprised shout from Liam and he darted out towards the entryway to catch sight of his other brother and his supposedly longer hair. 

“Come off it!” the younger Liam groaned. “I like my hair. Dakkar likes my hair. The two of you are the only ones who feel any need to poke fun.”

“We’re your brothers, Brennan. Of course we’re going to poke fun,” Liam responded. 

The two Liams continued bantering as they made their way farther inside the apartment. Killian lingered by the door with his brother’s partner. “It’s good to see you Nemo,” he said as the darker man pulled him into a hug. 

Introductions were made. Very confusing introductions were made. 

“Yes, my older brother is named Liam and so is my younger brother. I thought I’d told you this Swan.”

“I’m Liam David.”

“And I’m Liam Brennan.”

“I get just plain Liam because I’m older. He’s Liam Brennan. Or Brennan. Or LB. Or Little Liam.” Older Liam smirked. “Little Liam is my personal favorite.”

The Younger Liam let out what could almost be considered a growl but was quickly placated by the arm that wrapped around his waist and the firm body that accompanied it. 

“I’m Dakkar Nemo,” the man that arm and body belonged to said, introducing himself to Emma. He smiled honestly and amicably at her. 

Emma smiled back at him. “Emma Swan.” 

He nodded at her and turned back to the other men.

Elsa leaned over towards Emma. “Nemo is Liam’s partner of seven years. Think of them as a married couple,” she whispered to her. 

Emma nodded and smiled her thanks at the other woman. She hadn’t been 100% sure what the relationship was between Liam Brennan and Nemo, but Elsa’s explanation matched up with Emma’s suspicions. 

She was very glad that Henry knew enough to not comment on the relationship between the two men. She wasn’t homophobic by any means and it’s not as if Henry was a judgemental little boy. He was, however, always questioning and curious. Emma was now very grateful that when she and Henry had gone up to Storybrooke this past July, Henry’s Uncle August had currently had a boyfriend. It was much easier for an uncle to answer his nephew’s questions than Emma assumed it would be for a stranger, even one that seemed as nice as Nemo.

* * *

 

It was almost midnight. 

The guest room had been set up for Liam and Nemo. Killian’s own bedroom had been arranged for Liam and Elsa. Killian had set up the sofa bed for his own use. 

The tree glittered with lights, ornaments, garlands, and tinsel. Liam Brennan had laughed along with Henry as the two struggled together to make a homemade popcorn garland. Elsa had needed to intervene in order to make sure the garland got finished. 

Emma had found herself getting along well with all of Killian’s family, especially his in-laws Elsa and Nemo. They’d all instantly brought her (and Henry) into their little circle. 

When the Jones family had gathered around Elsa’s laptop to skype her sister and brother-in-law along with some other family members, Emma had taken Henry back to their own apartment next store in order to skype their own family in Storybrooke. Henry had initially whined at having to leave Killian’s but had quickly brightened back up when his Uncle David had answered the video call. Henry had proceeded to tell David and Mary Margaret all about the “Best Christmas Ever” they were having and his new friends, Liam and Elsa. 

When Elsa popped her head in to let the Swan duo know that their calls were done and that they hadn’t needed to leave, Henry had quickly blown kisses goodbye to his favorite Aunt and Uncle, shouted an “I love you!” followed by a “Merry Christmas!”, and barrelled towards Elsa and back over to the Jones home. That left Emma alone on the video call with her brother and sister-in-law. 

“So,” Mary Margaret had said with a knowing smile, “are you ready to trade in the Nolans for the Joneses?” 

“No! Of course not!” 

“Hmmm, yeah, of  _ course _ not,” David rolled his eyes. “I better meet this Killian guy first, okay? What kind of name is Killian anyway?”

“David,” Emma affectionately whined, “there’s nothing between Killian and I.” She paused. “And it’s Irish.” 

Now, as it approached the very start of Christmas day, Emma stood back in Killian Jones’ kitchen. She stood beside him. Each held a glass of eggnog (with just a splash of rum). Henry was asleep in front of the tree, wrapped up in the afghan that usually covered Killian’s sofa.  

“So, Swan,” he spoke quietly to her as to not wake the others. “How has this Christmas been so far?”

She smiled at him. “It’s been wonderful Killian. I can’t thank you enough. You, and your family, are absolutely incredible.”

Killian gave her his trademark smirk. “You think I’m incredible, love?”

Emma snorted. 

“In all honesty, Emma, this has been my best Christmas in years. You’re the incredible one, love. A part of me hopes that your flight gets cancelled next year. And the year after that. And every year as long as you and Henry live next door.” He stepped closer to her and reached his free hand out to tangle with hers. 

Emma didn’t know what to do. Emma didn’t know what to say. He was so close. He was always so close. He was always there whenever she was upset. He was always there to make her smile and to make Henry laugh. He was always there. Always so close. Yet, it never felt  _ too _ close with him. 

“Killian, I-” A  _ dong _ noise came from by the door. It was the antique grandfather clock Killian had in the entryway. 

Killian smiled at her, his eyes practically sparkling. “It’s Christmas,” he whispered, childlike excitement clear in his voice.  He leaned forward, Emma held her breath, and he place a soft kiss upon her cheek. “Merry Christmas, Swan,” he breathed. He backed away, a small smile still on his face. 

Emma watched him turn and start to walk out the kitchen.  _ No. _ She rushed forward. “Killian.” She grasped his hand and pulled him back towards her. His blue eyes looked so sad and so hopeful. She pulled him towards her and then she stepped closer. She kissed him. She kissed him on his lips. 

Killian wrapped his arm around her. She was it. She was everything. 

When they broke apart, Killian couldn’t have worn a happier expression on his face. Emma stepped back but didn’t let her hands leave his. A small smile was playing on her lips. 

“Merry Christmas, Swan,” he repeated. 

She nodded at him. “And to many more,” she laughed. 

**Author's Note:**

> Tah-dah! That's all!  
> Thanks for reading!  
> Merry Christmas!!!!


End file.
